Okay...I've been following this car since it was announced, I've dreamt about this car, I've followed people driving it just so I could see it in action, I bought Z valve caps for 'the day', HELL I even got myself a pair of shoes JUST for the day...JUST for driving the Z...I'm obsessed and in love with the 350z...

Long story short, it seems that I found a buyer for my Acura TL-s...this means...I can afford a Z. I don't think I'm ready for this...what color should I get? I like Super Black, I like Daytona Blue, and I like Brickyard... what color interior, and should I get leather or cloth? I'm getting a manual of course, should I get the track or the touring with the bose speaker system?

TALK TO ME, PEOPLE!!

oh man...I could **** myself right now...I did just a little...

Seriously...I don't think I'm ready for this...a Z...a REAL one...not a 1:18 scale model...a REAL Z THAT I DRIVE!!!!!!!!

I LOVE YOU ALL.

 

I can drive stick, but I'm no Alberto (on these forums), I guess I'm a beginner, are the gears easy to learn?


TWIRRRRLINNNNG TWIIIRRRRLINNNNG!

 

Welcome to the Club! You will love it lot more once you start driving it.

At this point, have you considered waiting for the 06 instead or 05.
For colors - Brickyard is not available anymore. Blue and Black are great colors, but a little pain to keep clean looking, more black than blue.

I would get manual, cloth seats and of course track because for me this car is a performance sports car, not a luxury car and I am not a big fan of leather.

I think bose comes with Touring and 35th only.

And if you dont know how to drive manual, please dont learn manual on the Z, it could be one of the reasons why people are having transmission problems.

Good luck.

 

Well I learned stick on an old Miata...big difference between that and a Z, I'm sure the gears are a lot smoother...but I wouldn't know for sure since I've never had the chance to drive a stick Z. I've driven on the road with stick before, it's not rocket science, just want to know what the gears are like.

I think I may end up going for blue if I can find it for the right price, I still see used 2003 Z cars going for up to 25k...which I could use to buy a brand new one of the same trim...

I'm sort of 'iffy' about a 2k3 model because of the problems, but I read posts where those problems continue up to the 2k5 models, so I guess I'll have to try my luck...

This is all so overwhelming!

 

man go for an enthusiast. there's really nothing on the other models that are worth IMO except for the brembos, which if you are not going to auto-x your z, then it is a waste of money. i have a 05 ppw enth 6mt and i love it. wouldn't change anything about it.

 

I was hell bent on the cloth interior. I used to have cloth, and always found it to be fine. Then I sat in an enthusiast, and didn't like it. I fell in love with the touring...what can I say?

My favorite color combos are

Super black / burnt orange leather
Silverstone / burnt orange leather

I think the most stunning color is Ultra Yellow... go look at it up close, the paint looks way better up close in person.

BTW don't buy touring for the Bose. Seriously.

Buy touring for the leather and VDC, pretty much no other reason imo.

 

good luck with whatever you decide. I wish I could have afforded brand new but Im honestly happy with my used Z.

 

Honestly I may just go with a used Z, a Z is a Z so as long as it is in good condition I see no reason to go against a used one. Hopefully this sale goes nice and smooth...I really like the brickyard so I might have to just go with a 2k3 to 2k4...or was Brickyard just 2k3 only?

 

Brickyard was only 2k3....they look good...

Hey BENSIN I sent you a PM...

 

My 2 cents is always to buy as new as you can...........particularly with a sports car.

Though my 03 Brick has been fine, I definately would not buy a used 03 if I could afford a newer one. 03s just have a higher probability of problems.

Get the Enthusiast model; it is the best bang for buck by far. It has cloth seats & non-Bose stero. Both can be upgraded later.

Don't worry on manny tranny; you will do fine. I taught my son to drive MT on my Brick with no damage to the car or his psyche.

Bottom line: 05 Enthuiast in color of your choice.

 

Welcome to the Team! The Z is so much fun to drive. So much in fact I my office is only 3 miles away but I manage to put on over 1k miles a month =). I have a SB it's an awesome color but a hassle to keep clean. The Enthusiast is the best bang for your buck which I'm sure you already know. Good luck.

 

I just click the link in your sig, a pic of your Z I see...I have to give you props that thing looks crispy, clean sexy as hell!

Brickyard Rat,

Awesome advice I will keep this in mind when looking for 'THE' car and considering cost to value ratios.

Does the rear window cause any problems due to it being so small? Any little 'irks' about the car? etc...? Anything bad or annoying you weren't expecting when you bought the car?

Sorry for all the questions but I really want to go into this knowing as much as I can aside from the specs and all that which I know religiously considering I worship the car... I think that individual accounts and reviews on the car are just as helpful as the standard review...if not more helpful.

Thanks all.

 

Go to the Nissan website to review specs for each model in detail.

The Zzz was better than I expected in at least two respects. First, at 6"2" & 220 lbs I thought I would be/feel cramped. Nope. Fit like a comfy glove. Second, on Cali roads the ride is very good; not as harsh as I expected.

The views out the rear take some getting used to but not a big deal. When moving to your right take a long peak over right shoulder.

When I return from vacation I hope to see pics of your smiling face with your new ride!!

 

I love my 03 performance but right now I would probably buy an 05 performance and it would probably be the same as my 03 was when I bought it. Good luck on your pick!

 

As everybody said: welcome to the club. Rest assured you're not ther only one with that Z-obsesion!

Check the 06 specs floating around this forum. Pay attentiom to the "3 new colors"; which in reality seem like 3 revisions of the existing: Chrome Silver, Super Black, & Lemans Sunset. And consider the 06, will have revised breaks, that arguably will closely match the Brembo's stop power.

Hang in there for 2 more moths, it might be worth the wait. Good luck!

 

Of course I may be prejudiced but I suggest a Daytona Blue Track 6MT model unless you just gotta have leather, heated seats, the Bose system (which sucks IMHO), nav system and the rest of the options. If that's the case, an Enthusiasts or Performance model would be the way to go.

The 6MT isn't hard to learn on. The stock shifter could be better and I have since replaced mine. I kept the stock shift lever ****, though. It's nice and grippy.

The Track model can be upgraded easily for sound with a system that sounds good and it's already got Brembo's on it and light weight forged aluminum wheels. Too bad they aren't a bit wider, though. They are 18's and since I've lowered the car, they don't look too bad.

One suggestion: The Nismo wheels look awesome and are of excellent quality. Have the dealer add those to whatever package you buy unless you have your eyes on a different set. Then get the base wheels and go from there.

Good luck with your decision.

 

get whatever color you want, if you're asking a forum what color to get I think there's something wrong... maybe you're not sane enough to drive a car if you can't decide on a color. I would get a base model, you can get one for $26500 after negotiations, and it has everything you truly need, except an LSD. Once you own the car for a few months, you're gonna be drooling on this forum about what form of FI to go with, cause driving won't be as exciting as it was the first week you owned it. You're lucky in there, turbocharger kits don't come in differnt colors, and superchargers have only a few different finishes to choose from...

 

As far as the gearing/shifting... 1st gear is very short .. 3500rpm has you going about 15mph and then you shift to 2nd but there is a delay between 1st and 2nd shift to rev match it smoothly since you need to let it drop. None of the other gears are even close to the difference 1st gear has. Altho u can usually chirp your tires racing somebody between your 1st and 2nd gears because of it and you arn't really caring about revmatching when racing.

 

Sorry! I just got excited, the reason I asked about color had to do with keeping it clean, what looks best with polish, etc... it was more for practical reasoning. So calm down there buddy, I'm 'kinda' sane.

 

Dude, you're fine. You're going to get some nice, helpful responses and some that aren't very nice because you're new. So just blow them off and dig through some of the crap posts for the good info. Good luck with the car,
Fletch